Check your measles vaccination, B.C. urges, as Ontario and Texas outbreaks grow – BC [Video]

Health officials are calling on British Columbians to ensure they are fully vaccinated against measles amid growing outbreaks of the dangerous and highly contagious virus in other parts of Canada and the United States.

Provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry made the appeal on Friday as she and Health Minister Josie Osborne announced the launch of a spring COVID-19 vaccination campaign for those most vulnerable.

“Measles is the most infectious of the viruses that we know can cause illness in people … particularly in children, and we know it can spread rapidly because it lasts in the air for a very long period of time,” Henry said.

“It can cause severe illness like encephalitis, inflammation of the brain, it can lead to long-lasting problems and can even cause deaths, particularly in children who are not protected.”

An ongoing outbreak in Ontario has sickened more than 570 people and hospitalized more than …